I purchased this tent last summer in anticipation of a 4-day camping trip. I will admit that i was initially attracted to its aesthetic appeal, however, the monsterous amount of space and ample screening sealed the deal!
I set it up in the yard soon after it arrived to seal the seams and to acclimate myself with it's assembly. The instructions are stitched right into the carrier bag so they can't be misplaced or torn - a nice feature, in my opinion.
The poles are color coded and easy to fit. The tent went up in about 15 minutes.... and that was just because I was new to the process.
On to seam sealing... You are going to need more than one bottle of seam sealer to do the whole thing... I got 2/3rds of the way around and ran out. I packed it up after that and finished sealing the day that we arrived at the campground.
During our stay we received one night of TERRIBLE rain! This tent DID NOT LEAK !!! Not one drop! It was really fantastic!
Dismantling is simple. The tent does fit back in the bag (with a little effort.... be sure to squeeze out all of the air as you roll and do so as tightly as possible).
Th Coleman Bayside 8-Person Family Tent - Orange
We bought this tent as a replacement in the middle of a trip when we lost the zipper on the door of our other tent. We looked at lots of tents in the campgrounds, and decided we wanted 2 things - to be able to stand up, and somewhere to stay dry. As motorcycle campers, we have little option besides the tent for getting out of the rain. The tent is fairly easy to set up, is very spacious, and has some great features - love the rainfly awning area in front of the tent. It is big enough to put 2 chairs under in inclement weather, as long as it is not blowing hard....
The ONLY change I would make to this tent is to add a window or two. The only openings with the rain fly on are the two in the door area..... While the rain fly design allows for some ventilation, it would be nice to be able to get more.....
We received this tent as a gift and it works out for us very well. It is very easy to set up and has a lot of unique and useful features (the door). It did drip a little water during a torential rain but not nearly enough to puddle. The round design isn't the most efficient but we did have 9 people sleep comfortably without supplies. I would recommend it.
I ordered this tent only because the Kodiak Canvas 10'x14' tent I wanted was backordered until next year, and with 2 trips planned, I needed a 10'x15ish' tent that would last a few trips. I bought this tent based on the coleman name, which though not what it once was, is still a decent affordable tent. I also liked the coverage the rain fly provided, it seems like too many new tents have insufficient rain flies.
Everything about this tent is mediocre. I'm not using that term to mean "bad" or "poor". By mediocre I mean "very average".
- Set up: Not too easy, not too hard. Took about 90 minutes the first time, without help. I've now got it down to 45-60 minutes by myself, 30 minutes with help from my wife. Poles are color-coded, everything fits properly, don't have to stress anything too much to get it set up.
- Ventilation: not great. On really hot days this tent cooks. However, as fast as it heats up, it will cool down just as fast, so it isn't the end of the world. If there is a breeze, the ventilation is perfectly adequate (mediocre).
- Weather resistance: Not great, not terrible. We endured about 48 hours of serious rain and wind (20-30mph sustained, gusts of 30mph+). The rain did get in the tent around the windows, though not enough rain to cause problems (tiny puddles about the size of a few quarters were left when the rain eventually stopped.) I sealed the seams and it still leaked a little. Probably need to apply a coat of waterproofer to the fly if you want total protection.
- Space: Plenty of space for 2-4 people, any more than that and it will get cramped. If you're just looking for a tent to sleep in, feel free to cramp the 8 people Coleman claims will fit in this tent. If you need a place to store your gear or hang out during a storm, do not put more than 4 people in this tent. The footprint is 10'x15', but it does not have that much usable space.
- Features: The vestibule is very handy, stored my grill and cooler there and they stayed plenty dry. The shelf system is gimmicky, but it actually helps store stuff. It has a couple of pockets for wallet, keys, etc... all in all the features were actually useful.
- Quality: Again, not great, but not bad. This tent will not last for years if you go camping more than a few days a year. However, if you take 1-2 camping trips a year, for a few weekends, you could probably expect this tent to last 3-5 years if you take care of it. The first thing you'll want to do is buy new stakes. At $1-2 per decent stake, and at least 10-15 stakes, that adds about $15-$30 to the cost of this tent. But you need to do this if you plan on camping on sand or loose dirt. The stakes this tent comes with are good only for camping in ideal conditions. Plan ahead, get decent stakes (MSR Groundhog, or heavy-duty Coleman stakes). If you camp 5-10 days a year, plan on this tent only lasting 1-3 years. Here is why: The way the poles and fly are constructed this tent lends itself to some serious pole bending under heavy winds. The only way I was able to keep my poles from snapping under 40mph gusts was to rig a rope to keep the pole from bending.
Conclusion: This is a perfectly mediocre tent. You get what you pay for: if you want a serious tent for years of serious camping, look elsewhere. If you want a decent tent that will accommodate 90% of your needs, for less than $150, the Coleman Bayside is not a bad option.
UPDATE: After 2 trips, a total of 5 nights, the tent developed 2 small holes in the fabric. The holes occurred in an area not covered by the rainfly, so we'll have to repair them or hope it doesn't rain next time we use this tent. I suspect the holes developed while packed away. Anyways, this should bump it down to a 2.5 star rating, but Amazon doesn't allow half-star ratings, soooo.... - Family Camping Tents - Family Tent - Tent - Coleman'
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